25 Surprising Fun Facts about Monopoly #WorldMonopolyDay

Calling all Monopoly fans! Here’s 25 Things You Didn’t Know About Monopoly. Here’s 25 Surprising Fun Facts about Monopoly to satisfy your curiosity! I love these Monopoly tidbits and think other curious monopoly fans like me who love the classic board game Monopoly will find fascinating and cool. And to celebrate World Monopoly happening TODAY, we’re giving away the Monopoly Jr. Electronic Banking game that makes the fun of Monopoly accessible (and exciting) for younger players to one lucky winner.

My kids and I are wild about Monopoly. I grew up loving the game and my Mom actually introduced Kenzie and Kyle, my kids, to Monopoly when they were 3 and 5. They LOVED it and it’s been a family favorite for everyone ever since!

25 Surprising Fun Facts about Monopoly

The MONOPOLY brand’s official birthday is March 19, 1935 when Parker Brothers acquired the rights for the game from Charles Darrow.

The MONOPOLY game is currently published in over 47 languages and sold in over 114 countries.

Charles Darrow of Philadelphia, PA first developed the MONOPOLY game in 1933.

The MONOPOLY game is based on Atlantic City, N.J., U.S.A

The original game was made from materials from Darrow’s own home. A piece of oilcloth covered the board and the cards were handwritten.

The original houses and hotels were made from wooden molding scraps.

The original MONOPOLY die-cast tokens were inspired by Darrow’s nieces who recommended metal charms from charm bracelets be used.

The original game included 10 metal tokens including iron, purse, lantern, racecar, thimble, shoe, top hat, battleship, cannon and a rocking horse.

Darrow attempted to sell the MONOPOLY game to Parker Brothers, but was initially rejected for “52 fundamental errors” that included the game’s length, theme and complexity.

Darrow first manufactured and sold the MONOPOLY game in local Philadelphia department stores.

Following the local success of the MONOPOLY game, Parker Brothers reconsidered their initial rejection and negotiated the rights to market the game.

Parkers Brothers in the U.S.A. and Waddington’s in the U.K. began manufacturing and selling the MONOPOLY game in 1935.

Within a year of the MONOPOLY game’s release in the U.S., 35,000 copies of the game were being made each week.

The original MONOPOLY game sold for about $2.

The current standard MONOPOLY game includes eight tokens: battleship, top hat, Scottie dog, racecar, cat, T-Rex, rubber ducky, and penguin.

The three most-landed-on properties in the standard MONOPOLY game are Illinois Avenue, “GO” and B&O Railroad.

The total amount of money in a standard MONOPOLY game is $20,580.

The MONOPOLY game is sold in over 100,000 retail stores.

On record, the longest game of MONOPOLY ever played lasted 70 straight days.

Under The Boardwalk: The MONOPOLY Story, a documentary about the MONOPOLY game, debuted in 2010 and won an Emmy® award.

In a recent study of approximately 2,000 people, nearly 50 percent of respondents reported some form of cheating during MONOPOLY gameplay, including stealing money from the bank, moving a token across multiple spaces, making up fake rules, and more.

This year, Hasbro launched a way to solve the game’s cheating and questionable behavior once and for all with the introduction of MONOPOLY CheatBot, an adaptation of Facebook Messenger.

In the fall of 2018, to give fans what they’ve been craving all along, the MONOPOLY brand is introducing the MONOPOLY CHEATERS EDITION game, where players will be encouraged to bend the rules and “cheat to win.”

The Official MONOPOLY brand Facebook page has over 10.7 million Facebook fans.

MONOPOLY Facebook fans hail from over 40 different countries.

World Monopoly Day Giveaway Entry Details

1 winner will receive the Monopoly Jr. Electronic Banking game. Eligibility is for US Residents, age 18+ with USA shipping addresses only.

More about Monopoly Jr. Electronic Banking game

This electronic MONOPOLY JUNIOR game makes banking easy! Accessible and exciting for younger players, kids may brush up on their money-counting skills when buying properties or paying rent with their kid-friendly electronic banking unit. Young players will love making transactions using bank cards and placing “sold” signs on their very own properties, such as the ice cream parlor, the toy store, and the skate park! When one player goes bankrupt, the game ends, and the player with the most money wins! Requires 2x AAA batteries, not included. Game includes gameboard, banking unit, 4 bank cards, 4 Junior tokens, 20 Chance cars, 48 sold signs, 4 Who’ Your Token? Character cards, 1 die, and game guide. Adult assembly required. Available at most major retailers nationwide and HasbroToyShop.com.

Note: Thanks to Hasbro for sending us samples to facilitate our feature and giveaway. As always, all thoughts and opinions are our own.

Colleen Padilla, the founder and editor of ClassyMommy.com lives in the Philly suburbs and is a full time mom for her 2 children, Mackenzie (7) and Kyle (5). Colleen and the Classy Mommy website have been featured on Fox News, Good Morning America, The New York Times, Parenting Magazine, The New York Post, local Philadelphia ABC, CBS, and NBC programs. Colleen has appeared in a TV special about Alpha Moms on South Korea’s NBC affiliate SBS. She also co-authored The Digital Mom Handbook (HarperCollins).